Ford aims for complete Le Mans domination starting in 2027 with LMDh car.

Ford will return to the 24 Hours of Le Mans to take on Ferrari and other top automakers.

Ford announced late Thursday that it plans to enter the Hypercar Class, the pinnacle of the FIA World Endurance Championship culminating in Le Mans, again in 2027 with its new LMDh racing car. The Hypercar Class, like the GTP Class, the pinnacle of the IMSA Sports Car Championship, is open to cars built to both LMDh and LMH regulations, with Aston Martin planning to enter a Valkyrie-based LMDh car this year and Genesis planning to enter its own new LMDh vehicle, and next year Genesis will enter its own new LMDh vehicle.

Ford announced that it will enter the World Endurance Championship with a factory team, but did not provide details. Under current LMDh rules, which are intended to reduce costs, Ford must use chassis from one of four suppliers: Dallara, Ligier, Oreca, or Multimatic. Given Ford's close relationship with Multimatic, the new Ford LMDh will probably use a Multimatic chassis.

Although automakers are relatively free in their choice of powertrain, the output must be capped at 670 hp. In addition, to keep costs down, they must use key components from approved suppliers, such as rear-axle hybrid systems using parts from Bosch, WAE, and Xtrac.

Ford won four consecutive Le Mans championships from 1966 to 1969, but then took a break from racing until 2016. Ford now competes in the GTLM class with its latest Mustang GT3.

Other major automakers competing at the top level of Le Mans include Alpine, BMW, Cadillac, Peugeot, Porsche, and Toyota.

“Ford has been synonymous with success for decades, both on- and off-track, and we are delighted that they have chosen the FIA World Endurance Championship for their latest challenge,” series CEO Frederic Recchiens said in a statement.

“To have at least 10 major car brands at the top of the series in 2027 is a testament to the championship's momentum and growth.”

Ford will also return to F1 in 2026, but will remain a technical partner of the highly successful team Red Bull Racing.